“Reading and writing are acts of empathy and faith. Guard that trust carefully — in this rapidly changing business, it’s the only sure thing.” ~Erin Keane

"Never give up. And most importantly, be true to yourself. Write from your heart, in your own voice, and about what you believe in." ~ Louise Brown

"Write something to suit yourself and many people will like it; write something to suit everybody and scarcely anyone will care for it." ~Jesse Stuart

"A writer's job is to take one thing and make it stand for twenty." ~ Virginia Woolf

Saturday, May 28, 2011

My Blogging Home

This past weekend I set up a Wordpress account, as I've been worried about what might happen here in Bloggerville. I was able to import my posts from 2009 and 2010 but none of the ones this year. Not sure why, I'm still learning the ropes over there.

As I gaze at my new Wordpress account with its relative newness and emptiness, I realize that here on Coming Down the Mountain is where I belong. It is here where friendships have been forged, frustrations and joys shared, followers added and counted one by one, comments read and rejoiced over, where my soul has been laid bare. You cried with me when my mother died. This is my blogging home.

I started it in June, 2009, with my plaintive first post which I later deleted because it sounded so pathetic. It took me an entire year to get twenty-five followers. When people I didn't know started following me I was ecstatic. I ignored all the "writers need websites" talk and kept right on blogging.

This is essentially my website and seems sufficient. Maybe if I get famous and have zillions of fans, I will want the distance a website gives. In that case, I'm all prepared with a site at Wordpress. *grin*

Karen, I keep wanting to set up a Wordpress account too but like you said, Blogger is so comfortable and homelike, it's hard to imagine being anywhere else. Even thought Blogger has seriously been worrying me!

Karen, let me ask you a few questions: Once I leave the Hollow, relocating to CT, I'll want to transition to a blog with a new name. I know I came change the title, but the URL I have is not through blogspot...it is a domain called "jp-homeinthehollow.com". Can I change the name of the domain so everything imports? My email is "ibjp2004@gmail.com"..:)JP

You know its funny, as a writer I often hope for the zillion fans, BUT I do love the fact that my blog allows me to have a conversation with people who have read my book (all 40 of them...he he). A zillion fans and a million copies sold is, of course, the dream... but I do hope I never have to step back from the conversation.

We only started January of this year, but know what you mean about this being 'home'... We are flustered at the problems, but guess that is how is goes at times, nothing is perfect in every way !We had to do a lot of things just to be able to get logged in and be able to post comments, but finally are able to today, hope tomorrow will allow it as well !

Even if you were on Wordpress, I'd still read your blog. But I know what you mean about Blogger; I've been having problems with it for a week now. I can't leave comments on most people's blogs, and I can't follow new blogs (nor can anyone follow me because the follower widget seems to be missing every other time I log on). That's also why I had to leave a comment as Name/URL rather than through my Google account.

I getcha. I am still wondering as blogspot seems a bit...well...spotty at the moment but the thought of a new address and all makes me weary. oh and it is doing it - I just tried to post this and it is doing that weird anonymous thingy. So, it is Jan Morrison www.labanan.blogspot.com yikes!

I've been pretty annoyed with Blogger this week, but I'd never move. You have to start from scratch and get all new followers. And I love the Dashboard and "follow" features.

A blog is technically a website. You can have all your info here and even a buy button for your books that links to Amazon or your publisher's site. Jane Friedman says every author needs a website you can update yourself, which is what a blog is.

Hi Karen. I worked my way around blogger probs eventually. There was a way to comment. Pop up comment boxes always worked, drop downs like yours didn't until I found a way. You had to click off the 'stay signed in' then you did stay signed in. Genius. I also loaded Google Chrome and everything is working like a dream. Apparently the new Internet Explorer isn't very compatible with blogger.

I started off on Wordpress. Blogger is so much better/easier. I especially hate the comment box on Wordpress blogs, but some people have set them to auto fill which is much better than having to fill in 3 fields every time.

Glad you didn't abandon ship. A lot to export!

PS. Following on from your post re having a simple, plain blog, did you find mine any quicker when you commented today?

I used to do Wordpress as well, but I found it more difficult to navigate and not nearly as many of my friends and connections were on it. I've enjoyed looking through your blog, I'm following and hoping to join you on this Blogger journey ;-)

I'm glad you'll stay with us on blogger for now. What I don't get, why were you worried in the first place?

I wish there was an easy way for all the blogger and wordpress and livejournals to communicate as much as we do on blogger. I hope your imports from this year work out somehow. Maybe the year needs to be finished or complete. Nahno ∗ McLein ™

Know what you mean. Before I knew about Blogger, I started with a Wordpress blog. WP is really complicated for me and I'm so glad I found all the wonderful friends through Blogger. Manzanita@Wannabuyaduck

Well, I'm still here and if Blogger crashes (not that I think it will) we will all move to Wordpress in mass. That's what happened to my Vox blogging friends. I came to Blogger because I had already set up a blog here, but most of the others went to Wordpress. *hello, flamingodancer!*

Please stay and make yourself at home. I made cookies.

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Helena Carr is finally ready to live. But first she's got to wake up from her coma.

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Actually, this IS your mother's cookbook....

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